A trip to New Forest Wildlife Park

During our recent camping trip, The Boy and I took time out from forest treks to visit New Forest Wildlife Park. Wildlife Parks are always tricky, in that it's tough to know what to expect. Some, such as Cotswold Wildlife Park, are so big that they are a zoo in all but name (I suspect they avoided that moniker due to the negative connotations it sometimes holds).

New Forest Wildlife Park is one of the smaller types of wildlife park. Although there is a lynx and a wolf pack, the focus is mainly on smaller animals. Owls and otters are a particular favourite, but the park is also home to deer, butterflies, and plenty of other animals.

Being a big cat fan, the lynx was my favourite. Yes, I know it's not strictly a big cat, but it's hardly your average household moggy, is it?

But most impressive was the pack of wolves. With them being diurnal, I don't know that I've ever seen wolves being active before. In most zoos, they tend to be curled up asleep during the day, and I've certainly never been fortunate to see one in the wild.

It was a real treat to see them running around their sizeable enclosure, playing with each other and interacting.

There's enough at the park to spend a couple of hours there, but certainly not a whole day. Plenty of playgrounds make it kid friendly, and there's an abundance of information about the conservation programmes the park is involved in (otters and harvest mice, to name just two).